Tag Archives: Paulo Coehlo

I saw the quote “And a mistake repeated more than once is a decision” by Paulo Coehlo on my sister’s blog and I wanted to paint it on a sign. It really resonated with my recent experiences. I had four boards painted white and ready for something so I started to look for more quotes to paint on the remaining three.

I really enjoyed The Alchemist written by Paulo Coehlo so I decided to look for some more quotes from him and found “You are not defeated when you lose. You are defeated when you quit.” This also resonated with me and I went as far as transferring the words to a sign. But before I got to the point of actually painting the words on I changed my mind. I liked the idea of not feeling defeated but I realized that I am a person who holds onto things long after I should have walked away. I have done this many times in my life. So, the idea that you are defeated when you quit didn’t sit well with me because sometimes you need to quit to succeed. Sometimes you really aren’t doing the right thing and no amount of trying is going to make you successful. Sometimes you just need to walk away. In those instances I would not agree that you are defeated if you quit. So, I sanded the board and started again. This time I just painted the simple word “delightful” on it. It is the one word I would chose to describe my daughter if I was only allowed one word.

Another quote that struck me is about making time for things. I have long realized that the words “I don’t have time for that” are not true. Really it should be “I don’t make time for that.” We are so busy in our lives that often we get caught up in the busy-ness. I have learned that if something is important enough then I have to make time to do it. Sometimes that is difficult to do and sometimes it takes me a while to realize it. If I catch myself saying the words “I don’t have time for that” I try to stop and ask myself if it is something I want to make time for or not and then make the decision whether to add it in to my schedule or let it go. I came across this quote from Charles Buxton “You will never find time for anything. If you want time, you must make it.” It was perfect. I painted it.

As for the last sign. It was a smaller board that kept telling me it should say hello. After trying to think of other things to paint on it I gave in and hello it became. I think it is a cheerful alternative to welcome.